KINGSVILLE, Texas – The Texas A&M-Kingsville softball team is off to a 7-0 start, matching the best mark in program history to begin a season, and they'll be putting their perfect record on the line at their second tournament of the year, the St. Mary's College Softball Classic, which will be held on Friday and Saturday in San Antonio, Texas.
First up for coach Craig Nicholson's charges are the Drury Panthers at 10 a.m. on Friday, followed by a tilt against the Regis Rangers at 12:15 p.m. On Saturday, the Javs will tangle with New Mexico Highlands at 2:30 p.m. and Colorado School of Mines at 7 p.m.
TAMUK's pitching staff has been all but untouchable through seven games. In their most recent action, the Javelinas swept a doubleheader against St. Edward's without allowing an earned run. Freshman Saidi Castillo (Kingsville, Texas) moved to 4-0 after tossing a complete game with seven strikeouts and no walks in a 6-4 triumph.
Junior Breanna Smith (San Antonio, Texas) did her teammate one better, putting together the sixth no-hitter in school history while her team cruised past SEU, 8-0, in game two. Smith faced the minimum 15 batters in the run-rule win, permitting just a single baserunner. The performances of Castillo and Smith lowered TAMUK's team ERA to 0.76, the best in the Lone Star Conference.
The Javelina offense flexed its muscle in both victories, with a showing that included senior Roxy Chapa's (McAllen, Texas) first two homers of the season. Freshman Veronica Chavez (Tempe, Ariz.) also circled the bases, belting her first round-tripper in Blue and Gold. On the bases, Nicholson saw his team swipe four bags, including a steal of home courtesy of another freshman, Amber Reyes (Edinburg, Texas).
The Drury Panthers spent their first weekend of the season in Arkadelphia, Ark., where they went 3-1 at the Ouachita Baptist Tournament. Drury's lineup and pitching staff both found success in the team's first showing, with the Panthers scoring 10 runs in their season opening win over Southwest Baptist University and reeling off a seven-run first inning en route to a run-rule triumph over Christian Brothers University.
The pitching staff tossed a pair of shutouts on the final day of the tournament, holding CBU to two hits before Madison Resch one-hit Ouachita Baptist for her team's third win. The Panthers will enter the weekend with a team ERA of 1.12.
Regis University will be making its first appearance on the diamond in the Alamo City, one year after winning 38 games and making it to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament semifinals. This year's edition of the Rangers was tabbed finish fourth in the RMAC's preseason poll and is attempting to replace four all-conference performances from a season ago.
The two top returners for second-year coach Daven Bond are utility players Tori Brown and Analece Apodaca. Apodaca posted a .384 batting average while pounding out 68 hits and 51 RBIs, with the latter two numbers placing her in conference's top 10. Brown crafted a .331 average and a team-high 19 doubles, helping her earn All-RMAC Honorable Mention recognition.
The final day in San Antonio for the Javelinas starts with the New Mexico Highlands Cowboys, who will also be in competition for the first time in 2019 this weekend. Their season will start with matchups against three of TAMUK's LSC rivals, Eastern New Mexico, A&M-Commerce and Tarleton, before they meet the Javelinas.
Another program out of the RMAC, the Cowboys were picked to finish at the bottom of league after collecting only nine wins in 2018. NMHU's offense does have the potential to be formidable however, as they brought back four of their top hitters in terms of average. That number includes sophomore Isabella Scarale, who led the team in homers as a freshman in only 62 at-bats. Also back in uniform is outfield Camrynn Ziegler, who topped the squad in RBIs and stolen bases while playing in every game.
Lastly, the Javs will gear up for a rematch with Colorado Mines. The teams met in Conroe, with the Javelinas using a five-run uprising in the eighth inning to erase a 2-1 lead on their way to 6-2 win. Mines' setback against the Javelinas was one part of a difficult weekend to for the Oregdiggers, who dropped all five games at the ATU Winter Invitational scoring just six total runs and managing only two extra base hits. The team's best player during their first week was pitcher Sydney Marchando, who threw to a 1.83 ERA in 15 1/3 innings.
Links to live stats as well as tickets for each game can be found on Javelinaathletics.com and a postgame recap will also be posted after the final out. To stay up-to-date with Javelina softball all year long, follow @TAMUKSB and @JavelinaSports on Twitter, @JavelinaSports on Instagram, like Javelina Sports on Facebook and visit Javelinaathletics.com.
